Traditional Kuala Kangsar kampung delights

An array of home-cooked traditional kampung dishes at Labu Kubong in Kuala Kangsar: (from left) ikan masin goreng, sayur kemahang masak lemak, Pucuk Paku Masak Rendang, and Ulam. — MING TEOH/The Star

Imagine the thrill of not just savouring your food, but cooking it, and even foraging in the wild or harvesting it at a nearby farm. This was what we experienced when we visited the royal town of Kuala Kangsar recently, on a media familiarisation trip organised by Tourism Malaysia and Destination Perak.

Growing one’s own food – or foraging for it – has always been a tradition in kampungs, and, to a lesser extent, in towns and cities in Malaysia. With modernisation, the trend is that more people buy their ingredients from markets, grocery stores, or other vendors, and planting and foraging for one’s own food might become a lost art, unless preserved.